BOYNTON BEACH – Benson Barnes played the game of his life in this weekend’s kickoff classic.
The Somerset Academy Canyons senior quarterback accounted for six total touchdowns (four rushing, two passing) in a 58-49 road loss to Jupiter Christian at Jupiter High School last night (Aug. 21).
Though the Cougars only led briefly in the early moments of their game against the Eagles – it was a 7-6 lead during the first quarter – the primary takeaway here is that they did not go down without a fight.
Barnes touched on that and more.
“Despite coming up short, we’re not going to dwell on the loss,” the 5-foot-11, 190-pound quarterback said. “Instead we will learn from the mistakes we’ve made, continue to practice hard and execute everything we do with maximum effort. I feel as if we played our heart out and left it all on the field. I couldn’t be happier for this team and how much we’ve grown with the help of our coaching staff and the leaders of this team.”
The best individual moment from Barnes was a 66-yard touchdown pass to freshman wide receiver Waden Charles. He broke down how the play happened.
“We needed a big play to keep ourselves in the game,” Barnes said. “My coach called the perfect play to have my receiver run a skinny post up the hash. I took a three-step drop and threw the ball past the safety and the trailing corner, who were in coverage. The ball fell perfectly into my receiver’s hands for the touchdown.”
Barnes rated his overall outing from last night’s game.
“My kickoff classic performance against Jupiter Christian was my best performance of my whole high school career so far,” Barnes said. “I’m glad I got the chance to show what I’m capable of.”
As a result of his amazing game from and his overall body of work, Barnes has now earned the title of our area’s No. 1-ranked quarterback in the Class of 2022.
“His game has developed tremendously over the past three years and this is the best we have seen him play,” Somerset Academy Canyons head coach Alex Gonzalez said. “He’s making smart decisions, protecting the ball, and taking what the defense gives him.”
Barnes has parlayed his comprehensive body of work into college interest from the likes of Alfred, Concordia, Lawrence, Walford, and Westminster College.
“He’s a great young man off the field and has good grades at a 3.5 GPA,” Gonzalez said. “He’s a freak in the weight room and on the field. But most of all, the kid is a very humble young man and selfless. He puts others first. He doesn’t have an ego. he just wants to play ball and get better every day.”
Barnes is looking forward to Week 1 of the regular season, when Somerset Academy Canyons plays in its home opener against Surge Academy. The game is slated for Friday, Aug. 27 with a 7 p.m. kickoff.
“I plan on leading my team to a victory in Week 1 and continuing to build momentum off that win throughout the rest of the season,” Barnes said. “I also plan on doing everything in my power to perform at the highest level I know I can perform at during each and every game.”
